Hugging: A Crime Most Heinous

How dare a student put his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders! I have never heard of anything so improper! And to think that friends would dare to go so far as to actually hug each other at the end of a school day! They must be punished!

Please excuse my excessive use of sarcasm, but sometimes I think that it’s the best way to express extreme disgust.

Is this really the kind of world that we want our kids growing up in? A world where simple touch is something that they will be disciplined for?

Rules that prohibit touching and hugging in schools are becoming more prevalent and more strict in schools across America. Something must be done, and if not us, then who?

I've written on the subject of hug bans in schools before here, my feelings are that I haven't made enough of an impact. After my last blog entry regarding the school rules prohibiting hugs, I was shocked by the response I had (not here, but on myspace). I’ve received many comments and messages from people who are totally outraged by these bans. I wasn’t surprised that people were against the rules, but that so many seemed not to have even known about them before reading my blog was a bit of a shock. These are people who could and should be having an input and affect on these rules that affect our children. Regardless of this reaction, I still don't feel that it is enough. We need to take action.

I have decided that I'll be putting together a kind of questionnaire to use in interviewing people who I (and you) think should have some say in these “no-touching” and “no-hugging” rules that are popping up in more and more schools.

I need your opinions. Your ideas as to who should be included in interviews and what kind of questions I should ask will be very important to this process. I may even need some volunteers to help me with the interviews. Teachers, psychologists, medical doctors, parents, and students are some of the people who make sense to me. If you can think of anyone else who should be interviewed, please let me know!

Now I also need your help in raising awareness of these rules and the changes needed in our schools. Please link to this blog and tell your friends about it in order to help me keep everyone updated on these issues and MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE COMMENTS! By contributing your opinion on these matters, you will be helping bring us a step closer to making sure that our children do not grow up in schools where acts of kindness and affection are marked as improper or dirty.

School Enforces Strict No-Touching Rule
Tustin middle school students suspended for repeated hugging
13-Year-Old Girl Gets Detention for Hugging
School Club Battles Against "Hug Ban" By Organizing a "Hug Day"
Stop the War On Hugs

How I Came Up With “Hugs Heal”

I've had some people asking me how exactly I came up with Hugs Heal and why I choose to do this, so here's the deal.

I've always enjoyed hugs and thought that they were a very important part of anyone's life, but that thought was always kind of abstract; I didn't have anything specific to attribute it to. But not long ago I was reading an article on abc.com about a study that was done showing that hugs can actually reduce the risk of heart disease. I remember thinking “Wow, hugs really do heal.” I thought that was so incredible and a such very important find. It made me think of all the times in my life that a hug has made me feel better and all times I've hugged friends and family members when I thought they needed it. I realized that hugs have a far more profound effect on our lives than most people really appreciate. So, I came up with the "Hugs Heal" idea.

So far it's just a myspace and a blog, but people have been responding so wonderfully to my message that who knows where it will go. I've been getting all sorts of ideas about making this into a real organization, but it's a bit early to consider that too seriously. For now, I just want to get my message across and touch as many lives as possible in the process.

Stop The War On Hugs

I have just read yet another article about students getting in trouble for hugging. Personally, I find these "Hug Bans" at school absolutely ridiculous, unnecessary, and potentially harmful to America's youth. Please Click Here to read the article and get a better idea what these rules are about.

Every time I hear about a student being punished for giving their friend a hug, my chest constricts, my face turns red, my hands clench, and let's just say that no one should be asking me any favors. Hugging is such an important part of our lives, and it is especially important to children and teenagers.

These are the years when emotions are already in such turmoil; how can we deny these children the simple and wonderful comfort of a hug? And if our youth grow up not experiencing the incredible power of hugs, how can we expect them to understand how important they are? How much will this effect these children? How will it effect how they treat they kids and grandkids? This is our future we're talking about. Are we headed down a very slippery slope toward an world where freely-given affection will be socially unacceptable?

These bans may seem insignificant to some, but if they are allowed to continue, I believe that they will spread and evolve into stricter and stricter rules banning many expressions of affection. Just how many acts of warmth and friendliness are we willing to allow our children to miss out on?

How can we expect our children to become kind people in adulthood if we punish them for acts of kindness in adolescence?

Quote of the Day

“I will not play tug o' war. I'd rather play hug o' war. Where everyone hugs instead of tugs, Where everyone giggles and rolls on the rug, Where everyone kisses, and everyone grins, and everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.” - Shel Silverstein

Hugs Reduce the Risk of Heart Disease!

Source: ABC.com

A study conducted at North Carolina University concluded that hugs increased levels of oxytocin, reducing blood pressure; which reduces the risk of heart disease, America's #1 cause of death.
So if you think hugs are worthless,
YOU ARE WRONG.

Hugs

This blog is dedicated to bringing people together and to spreading a message of love and kindness. Hugs Heal is inspired by the awesome healing power of hugs.

A hug is an embrace; to take someone into your arms with caring and affection. But thats not all a hug is. A hug is an expression of love, friendship, and kindness. A hug can heal the world's worst wounds; physical or emotional. A hug can give a person that bit of strength that they need in order to just keep going.

There is a hug for every mood, every ailment. The Comforting Hug for when you're sad, the Happy Hug when you're excited, and of course the Bear Hug; appropriate for all occasions.

My cat starlight hugging his kitty doll!